Seungwoo's father sparks suspicions of military service evasion

YouTuber Seung-woo's father (real name Mok Jin-hwa) is receiving a lot of criticism for his slip of the tongue. A comment about a used goods trading app became a problem. The controversy is intensifying due to the late apology. In addition, Seungwoo's father's 'suspicion of military service evasion' also surfaced again.

Seungwoo's father recently posted an apology for the controversy on the YouTube channel community he runs.

Seungwoo's father said, "I would like to express my deepest apologies for the inappropriate remarks and excessive words and actions," and "The biased and excessive remarks toward specific platforms or users were my fault and a careless action without any excuse."

Previously, Seungwoo's father strongly criticized a used goods trading app. On the 1st, Seungwoo's father visited YouTuber 'Subingsu's' restaurant and gave him advice on starting a business. During this process, Seungwoo's father pointed out, "If you post a job advertisement (on a used goods trading app), only used goods will come in."

When the video containing the remarks was uploaded, a problem arose. The person in charge of the used trading app who watched the video left a comment on the video. The app manager explained and corrected, “You can get a part-time job (through the used goods trading app).”

Afterwards, Seungwoo's father expressed his discomfort with the comment. He said, "Don't advertise for free. I have no conscience. With my old-fashioned common sense, I don't easily accept recruiting (on a used goods trading app). For some reason, people also look like used goods."

Many people who saw this argued, “Does looking for a job (on a used goods trading app) make you a second-hand person?”

Seungwoo's father is a large YouTuber with 1.63 million subscribers. Although he revealed his beliefs about the used goods trading app, it was difficult to gain sympathy from many people. Here, the tone that went beyond criticism and bordered on condemnation was enough to arouse hostility.

The controversy surrounding Seungwoo's father did not stop there. The suspicion of ‘military service evasion’ was highlighted. The suspicion of ‘military service evasion’ against Seungwoo’s father was a story that came out several years ago. Seungwoo's father is a Canadian citizen.

It is known that he acquired it by immigrating to Canada during his high school years. Immigration ended in about three years. Seungwoo's father returned to Korea after obtaining citizenship. Seungwoo's father, who returned to Korea, has continued to work as a chef.

There has been criticism that the process of acquiring Canadian citizenship is 'military service evasion'. Seungwoo's father's process of acquiring citizenship is a representative method for avoiding military service in the entertainment industry. In fact, the same case was true of Steve Yoo (Yoo Seung-jun), who acquired American citizenship and did not have to serve in the military. Currently, this method has become illegal due to the strengthening of the Military Service Act.

However, it is only a suspicion of military service evasion. There is no evidence that Seungwoo's father immigrated to Canada to avoid military service.

The problem is that as soon as the controversy erupted, another controversy erupted. Another reason for criticism is that he caused inconvenience to many people with his somewhat light words and actions. Seung-woo's father couldn't properly judge the standards between conviction and sarcasm. An apology was made, but it takes time for the controversy to subside.

Reporter Junho Yoon, Ten Asia delo410@tenasia.co.kr